Patty Griffin

Patty Griffin, born March 16 1964, is an American singer-songwriter from Old Town, Maine, next to the Penobscot Indian reservation. Two of her first four albums were unreleased by A&M Records.

A&M Records signed Patty on the strength of her demo tape. Nile Rodgers produced her first studio album, which Patty felt was overproduced. That album was unreleased, and A&M instead released a stripped-down reworking of her demo tape, called Living with Ghosts.

1998's Flaming Red was a departure from the acoustic sound of Living with Ghosts, with a mix of quieter and flat-out rock and roll songs. The follow up Silver Bell had a similar sound, and was unreleased by A&M. Patty has rerecorded songs from that album for later releases (such as "Making Pies" from 1000 Kisses, and "Mother of God," "Standing," and "Top of the World" from Impossible Dream), and others have been covered by the Dixie Chicks. Copies of Silver Bell have leaked out, and can be acquired via the "B&P" (Blanks and Postage) method on message boards.